A mayoral matchup many in Livonia thought could happen this year appears will not happen this election season.

City council president Maureen Miller Brosnan, a candidate who many believed would run for the city’s top post, has decided against running for the position later this year.

“While I know this is the right decision for me and my family, it doesn’t make it any easier to put a dream aside,” she said in a message to the Observer. “I have a bright vision for our community, and while I might not be able to serve as mayor at a time when we have the greatest potential to realize that vision, I plan to continue to do my part to be part of Livonia’s best days.”

She cites her health as being the main factor in the decision to not run. Brosnan had surgery last fall on her lungs and continues to recover from an unknown health issue.

Running an effective campaign for mayor is something she said she could not do while continuing to recover from her illness.

“Campaigns are a very physical undertaking and unfortunately, the campaign I’m going to need to take on is getting to the bottom of this health issue and resolving it,” Brosnan said.

She last ran for the city’s top position in 2007, when she was defeated by current mayor Jack Kirksey. Most recently, she came in first place in the 2013 city council election.

Currently, the only candidate who has filed to run for the mayor’s position is council vice president Brian Meakin. No one else had filed as of 4 p.m. Friday, according to the city clerk’s office. Kirksey is term-limited and cannot run again this election cycle.

Brosnan said she plans on continuing to serve as council president, a position she will retain through this year. She has two more years on the city council.

“I still have a lot to contribute as president of the council and as one of its senior members,” she said.

Up for election this year are four seats on the city council, as well as the mayor’s office, clerk’s office and treasurer’s office.